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Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Fear Of A Black Educator, Part 1 | The Jose Vilson

Fear Of A Black Educator, Part 1 | The Jose Vilson:

Fear Of A Black Educator, Part 1

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Last night, in a fit of angst, I sent off a series of tweets:

Without hesitation, someone decided to reply with “Why not move to a country where there isn’t white oppressors then?” It was the usual fare for folks who tweet with a social justice framework. The anonymous trolls range anywhere from 16 year olds getting their kicks from beating down “social justice warriors” to older folks touting flags, dogs, and egg avatars. I’m not fazed. 
But this one made me do a double take. Because, in many ways, the current education reform movement treats longstanding educators, especially of color, as disposable. Indeed, educators of color seemingly have a choice to teach wherever they wish. They can teach at a private school with a plethora of resources, only a tint of racial diversity, and a truly safe space for kids to learn. This space won’t get shut down from test scores or incompetent adults. They can teach at a charter school and work longer hours, expertise need not apply. They may get their supplies paid for, but if they come off-script, they get their boundaries quickly redrawn for them.
Or they can teach at a public school. They might want to teach at a well-resourced and well-renowned school, but chances are, they’ll be told they’d be better off teaching at a low-income school with mostly students of color.
I’ve spoken to dozens of educators of color across the country. It’s no surprise that choice for educators is more perilous for those of us with marginalized phenotype and skin color. As I’ve Fear Of A Black Educator, Part 1 | The Jose Vilson:

Michigan Leads Nation … In Denying Child Care To Low-Income Families

Michigan Leads Nation … In Denying Child Care To Low-Income Families:

Michigan Leads Nation … In Denying Child Care To Low-Income Families


The cost of child care is one of the biggest expenses facing many families in the United States. For some, the cost is more than their rent or mortgage payment. Low income families especially struggle to find affordable child care.
Child care providers are among the lowest paid workers, are most likely to be living in poverty, and barely making ends meet for their own families.
Yet, lawmakers in Michigan are about to walk away from $20.5 million in federal funding for child care because they won’t commit to spending $7.5 million in state money to help working families. Michigan has the disappointing distinction of being the state that returns the most unused federal funding dollars every year. In 2014, Michigan missed out on $9.3 million of federal funding.
Michigan’s limit on the amount of income a child care assistance recipient can earn is also the lowest in all 50 states. That means Michigan only offers assistance to the bare minimum number of needy families.
Some legislators have named underutilization of the program as a reason for not supporting funding, but Michigan also makes it incredibly difficult to apply for child care assistance. Parents trying to get help report onerous paperwork, long waits, and confusion over the process.
At the recent Child Care Policy Summit in Lansing, participants heard from many people about road blocks to receiving assistance.
Marnese Jackson is one of them. The Michigan mother found paying for full day care for herMichigan Leads Nation … In Denying Child Care To Low-Income Families:

The Child Predator We Invite into Our Schools | gadflyonthewallblog

The Child Predator We Invite into Our Schools | gadflyonthewallblog:

The Child Predator We Invite into Our Schools

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There is a good chance a predator is in the classroom with your child right now.
He is reading her homework assignments, quizzes and emails. He is timing how long it takes her to answer questions, noting her right and wrong answers. He’s even watching her body language to determine if she’s engaged in the lesson.
He has given her a full battery of psychological assessments, and she doesn’t even notice. He knows her academic strengths and weaknesses, when she’ll give up, when she’ll preserver, how she thinks.
And he’s not a teacher, councilor or even another student. In fact, your child can’t even see him – he’s on her computer or hand-held device.
It’s called data mining, and it’s one of the major revenue sources of ed-tech companies. These are for-profit business ventures that produce education software: programs to organize student information and help them learn. They make The Child Predator We Invite into Our Schools | gadflyonthewallblog:


Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 9/20/16

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 9/20/16



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Charter school bill calls for accountability - The San Diego Union-Tribune





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